The present invention relates to mechanical guns and more particularly to air operated guns with repeating capability.
Various airguns are known in the art in which a magazine comprising a plurality of launching tubes is moved relative to a compressed air outlet to sequentially align a plurality of projectiles for launch from a single air pump comprising a plunger and air chamber contained by the gun. Examples are found in U.S. Pat. No. 2,237,678 (Lohr et al), U.S. Pat. No. 3,540,426 (Lohr et al), U.S. Pat. No. 3,913,553 (Braughler et al), U.S. Pat. No. 4,841,655 (Ferri), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,307 (Tsao). These references all disclose cocking actuators, for drawing the plunger rearward in preparation for firing, comprising either a handle manually driven through a linear sliding motion, or a pivoted lever which is manually driven through a semi-circular arc. In all cases the actuating member of the cocking mechanism reciprocates through a forward stroke and a reverse stroke in each cycle of operation (where a cycle of operation corresponds to one complete firing and advancement of the gun). None of the cited references employs or suggests the use of a rotary actuator for cocking the airpump, wherein the actuator may be driven continuously in a single direction for a complete cycle of operation or multiple cycles.
Pneumatically discharged guns utilizing rotary hand crank mechanisms are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 399,882 (Graydon) and U.S. Pat. No. 1,478,597 (Bebler). However, neither gun utilizes the hand crank to cock or release a plunger, or in any other way to cause air to be compressed. Instead, both use the hand crank to open valves allowing pressurized air to flow from precharged reservoirs.
Numerous prior art references may be found in which a toy machine gun ejects projectiles by utilizing a crank mechanism to cock and release a hammer or firing pin that strikes the projectiles directly. The following U.S. Patents disclose mechanisms of this type: U.S. Pat. No. 511,069 (Brown), U.S. Pat. No. 1,328,929 (McDaniel), U.S. Pat. No. 1,353,696 (Abramowitz), U.S. Pat. No. 1,360,410 (Jones), U.S. Pat. No. 2,371,249 (Majewski), U.S. Pat. No. 2,434,436 (Rochowaik), U.S. Pat. No. 2,836,167 (Saito), U.S. Pat. No. 4,241,716 (Tsui) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,834,058 (Gegere). None of these suggest the use of an air pump or air pressure for discharging projectiles. With the exception of Saito, which takes the form of a pistol, the devices disclosed are either supported by tripods and equivalent structures, or are provided with a rifle stock and a downwardly depending forward handle.
Crank operated liquid pumping devices, including one which stores crank energy in a torsion spring, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,746,643 (Spalding).
Air guns which employ an elongated nozzle extension to move projectiles from a magazine to a single launching barrel are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,818,887 (Akiyama) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,251 (Lilley).